Shuu—
A great explosion of light rocked the air, sending both the angels and the demons to become temporarily blind. A lone figure, looking like a rocket blasting off, shot forward from the smoke.
"Die!"
Chuljang roared in anger, before her flaming whips danced in the air. Azrael, the angel that ruled over the virtue 『Patientia』, caught her whip made of flames without blinking. In her hand, the flames sputtered and died.
"Leviathon, you cannot win against me."
"My name is Chuljang!"
Chuljang let go of her whip and instead yanked her sword out. Her sword blazed in the air, like molten lava that had taken a solid form. Her aura of wrath covered her from head to toe, forcing the angel to retreat.
Azrael lightly sighed. "Then, you leave me with no choice."
"Stop saying hypocritical words like that, you bastard!"
Azrael released her own aura, which bathed her in golden rays of light. Magical energy rose up in her body, and as she unsheathed her own sword, Chuljang began her attack.
Their swords clashing together echoed loudly in the air, the two figures blurring and appearing seconds later, a few feet away from their original position.
The two of them were very different in their approach to battle. Chuljang was aggressive and fast, while the angel was more slow and deliberate, carefully planning her every move.
『Ira』 and 『Patientia』, the sin and its opposing virtue, fought by the lords that ruled over them. With their every move, wounds tore apart their body.
Chuljang roared and powerfully swung her sword. In the next instant, a long wound was seen in Azrael's shoulder.
Huā huā!
Azrael didn't lose to her either. Her sword strike slashed against the demon lord's arms and penetrated into her thigh. Chuljang coughed out a mouthful of blood, her red eyes blazing.
"You...!"
"Leviathon...no, Chuljang. You were always too impatient. While you were out there throwing a temper tantrum, what do you think I was doing behind the scenes? Patiently training day and night, and raising up my power little by little."
"I don't give a damn about your stupid backstory. Shut up and fight, you bastard!"
Despite her wounds, Chuljang dashed forward without a care for the pain that was coursing through her body. The angel's sword was imbued by holy power, which acted like a poison for the demon lord of wrath.
Pēng!
One of Chuljang's wings got torn. She felt the time slowing down...no, it didn't actually slow down. More accurately, she had sped up. She could see Azrael's eyes opening wide.
"You crazy..."
"Yeah, I'm a crazy bitch. So what?"
Her speed began tearing off her wings, but Chuljang didn't care. Her body shot forward, her sword bursting into flames with enough heat that it could melt down everything that was blocking its path.
Shinnng—
Chuljang swung her sword. Azrael had mocked her, saying that she was doing nothing while the angel was training hard everyday.
She was doing nothing? What a joke.
The underworld she was living in was chaotic, completely unlike the heaven where these bastards lived a calm and organized life. If you weakened just by a little bit, other demons would devour you and use you as their stepping stone.
From the moment she had been born up to now, she had been struggling crazy hard, then struggling some more, just so that she could live a little longer.
Her deadly sin, 『Ira』. This was the sin she accumulated and absorbed until her very being was an act of anger against the world itself.
Her sword of blazing flames pierced into Azrael's torso, and the sound of something exploding echoed in her ears. But Chuljang had drained all of her strength, her eyesight blurring.
Her torn wings flapped uselessly behind her, and like a shooting star that had achieved its glory, her body began to fall down in the air.
One last thought floated in her mind before she completely blacked out.
'Compared to him...I'm still much too weak.'
...
Ripples of energy disturbed the air, and Michael's powerful kick was blocked by Yanluo. There was a shimmering barrier protecting the demon lord of greed, which on some angles looked like a safety vault.
The demon lord Yanluo, which ruled over the deadly sin 『Avaritia』. His other name, Mammon. He was one of the strongest demon lords in the underworld, which meant that he was a very difficult opponent to fight with.
Michael blew out a frustrated breath.
"I already knew this, but you're a tough enemy to battle."
Luckily for Michael, he wasn't called the 'strongest angel' for nothing.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Michael leapt forward, his right fist flying towards Yanluo with all of his strength behind it. He was confident that the demon lord of greed wouldn't be able to dodge, because he saw an opening in his stance finally appear.
Just as his punch was only an inch away, Michael saw the opening abruptly disappear.
'Damn, it was a trap!'
With no space to pull back, Michael could only watch helplessly as Yanluo agilely moved his body and swung his golden axe at his direction. A deep gash opened up in his left arm, and instead of blood, golden coins poured through his wound.
Michael suppressed his groan, immediately jumping backwards to avoid his succeeding slash.
Yanluo's eyes glimmered like jewels as he stared at the endless coins pouring from the angel's wound. The corners of his lips curled upwards.
"As expected, you're profitable."
Michael gritted his teeth. The demon lord of greed was the kind of opponent that he hated the most. It was because they were very hard to deal with. He had laid too many traps in his fight, all to mislead and lure his opponent. Just like his sin, Yanluo always calculated the best move to make.
Greed, the sin that corrupted humans to become selfish individuals. On the other hand, Michael's virtue was 『Caritas』, a kind of love that was self-sacrificial. Generosity, unlimited compassion, and charity.
"Yanluo, the Great Demon King is deceiving you." Michael looked up to where their leader was, and stared at the revolving representation of the pixel that she held in her hand. "This world is something he had created to imprison all of us."
Despite him being an enemy, Michael wanted Yanluo to learn of the truth too. But contrary to his wishes, the demon lord of greed only swung his axe and calmly asked him.
"Are those your final words then? If you have any last will, tell me."
Michael had predicted that his opponent probably wouldn't believe him. That's why he had to win even more. He had to show them...show all of them, what this world truly was.
And also reveal the identity of their real enemy all along.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
One punch, two punches, three punches—like a complete blitzkrieg, Michael pounded at Yanluo nonstop. Yanluo also swung his weapon, which Michael didn't evade. The axe sank into his left flank, digging into his flesh. The sickly coppery taste of blood surged at the back of his throat, but Michael held it down through sheer force of will.
Golden coins rained down from the sky. Just as Yanluo was about to yank out his axe and hack at the angel again, Michael grabbed his collar and head-butted him.
"Guh..."
Yanluo lost his sense of balance, and Michael didn't let go of the opportunity. Still holding onto Yanluo's collar, he plunged the two of them straight into the ground.
Boom!
Along with the thick plume of dust rising in the air, a series of colliding sounds could be heard.
Bam! Bam!
Michael climbed on top of Yanluo, ignoring the large wound on his abdomen.
He began pounding on the demon lord's face with his bare fists. With every hit of his flesh, Yanluo coughed out golden coins as well. It was as if the angel was hitting a piñata filled to brim with money.
"Listen to me for a bit, you stupid capitalist!"